China Lake Watershed Planning Meeting
6 - 8 PM Thursday, Dec. 2
Register for Zoom Link HERE
China, Vassalboro & Albion – On Thursday, Dec. 2 from 6-8 PM, the China Lake Association (CLA) will host a public meeting to update China, Vassalboro and Albion residents, lake users, public drinking water customers and all interested parties about current efforts to restore water quality in China Lake.
The lake association and its partners are in the process of completing an updated 10-year Watershed-Based Management Plan (WBMP) for the lake that includes restoration strategies to reduce current sources of pollution in the watershed and prevent recurrence of annual algal blooms in the lake. The last watershed plan was completed in 2008 and is now out of date. The meeting will provide an update from project scientists including Jennifer Jespersen of Ecological Instincts. Public feedback is needed to help inform the management plan. The meeting will be held online and include interactive polling and a Q&A session for attendees to ask questions about the plan.
Interested stakeholders must pre-register to attend the meeting by contacting the CLA by email at info@chinalakeassociation.org or visit the CLA website or Facebook page for a direct registration link.
China Lake is a 3,849-acre dual-basin lake with a 27-square mile watershed located in the towns of China, Vassalboro and Albion. China Lake has been the source of water for the Kennebec Water District since 1905, supplying Waterville and the surrounding area with drinking water. Since 1983, China Lake has experienced annual nuisance algal blooms as a result of a long history of excess phosphorus loading from the watershed that has accumulated in the lake sediments. China Lake is listed on the Maine Department of Environmental Protection’s (DEP) list of lakes that do not meet State water quality standards. In 2020, CLA led a watershed survey which identified 161 sites where pollution enters the lake. The updated WBMP is the next step in the process to allow local conservation partners to access state and federal grants to improve water quality in the lake and get China Lake off the impaired lakes list.
In addition to CLA, the project steering committee and technical advisory committees include representatives from the Kennebec County Soil & Water Conservation District, China Region Lakes Alliance, Kennebec Water District, Maine Department of Marine Resources, the towns of China and Vassalboro, Colby College, Maine DEP, Ecological Instincts and Water Resource Services. Funding for this project, in part, was provided by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency under Section 319 of the Clean Water Act. The funding is administered by the Maine DEP in partnership with EPA.
The public’s participation will help experts protect this valuable resource through the sharing of knowledge and by helping to shape the plan. For more information, or to register for the public meeting contact Elaine Philbrook by email: info@chinalakeassociation.org.
